Nordstrom is taking its renowned customer service up a notch this holiday season, offering shoppers the chance to have their purchases delivered curbside at 10 stores -- even in the dead of night.

The upscale department store chain's 24/7 service will kick off Dec. 16, and continue until the morning of Christmas Eve.

The perk is the latest creative attempt by traditional department stores to head off what they fear will be more sales lost to online retailers like Amazon.

At a time when many consumers are content to order items and have them dropped on their doorstep, Nordstrom already offers customers the convenience of purchasing items with a click of the keyboard and then picking them up at an actual store.

But the ability to get a package brought to their car after the kids have gone to bed, or when heading to the office before dawn is an additional touch the retailer will be testing at stores where curbside and in-store pickup have already proven most popular.

"I think more than any other time of the year...traditional store hours may not fit into our customer's lifestyle,'' says Shea Jensen, Nordstrom's senior vice president of customer experience. "And so if we can find ways to lighten their load a bit during the busy season, we're happy to do that."

With curbside pick up, customers who buy an item online receive an email confirming that the order's been placed along with a phone number they can call or text to say they're on their way to get it. They can also text the word "gift'' to get a free gift wrapping kit.

Once they arrive at the store, an employee will meet them outside with the package in hand.

Here's a list of the stores that will have the round-the-clock holiday service.